


Most Unfortunate Situation

by CatSnacc



Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Banter, Circus Arc (Kuroshitsuji), Female Pronouns for Grell Sutcliff, Flirting, I wrote this impulsively, Other, Roommates, Teasing, This fic is all over the place tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-20
Updated: 2018-08-20
Packaged: 2019-06-29 17:50:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15734403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatSnacc/pseuds/CatSnacc
Summary: Sebastian Michaelis did not care for the circus. He didn't care for the unclean conditions, he didn't care for the staff, and he certainly didn't care for a particular red reaper working undercover.(a self indulgent piece I wrote at two am after wondering how different some scenes of the circus arc would have played out if Grelle hadn't been on suspension, and had been sent to investigate instead of Will.)





	Most Unfortunate Situation

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, everyone!
> 
> I hope you enjoy this clusterfuck of a fic I managed to throw together. This is my first fic I've ever posted anywhere lmao, so feel free to leave any comments or constructive criticism! They are greatly appreciated!
> 
> As a sidenote; I was initally going to post this in chapters, but it ended up being so short that I left it together. This only focuses on the scenes in which Sebastian and Will originally interact, except with Grelle instead- beginning with their initial meetup and ending with the flying trapeze scene.

All of this circus business was incredibly obnoxious.

It was an utter chore- having to get himself _and_ his obviously incompetent master accepted into their ranks. While it wasn’t difficult whatsoever for him to put on an extravagant display of acrobatics (in order to avoid several poorly coordinated attacks by an enraged woman, at that), having to feign Ciel’s knife throwing and tightrope walking skills definitely _was_. It seemed that expecting the child to have any ounce of talent whatsoever was _still_ expecting too much. How tragic.

The circus grounds were gross and unclean, and the inside of the practice tent smelled of livestock and dusty, sweaty men. He tried to stop his nose from wrinkling in disgust.

The blonde headed boy with the knives- Dagger, or whatever his name was- was talking again. Something about programs. He was blabbering on to Ciel, gushing about how excited he was to bestow his knife throwing skills onto him.

 _Good luck with that_ , Sebastian thought to himself.

“What about you, Black?” Dagger asked, turning his attention to the butler before him. “What do you wanna do for your program?”

“I don’t have a preference.” Sebastian answered, staring down at the shorter male.

Dagger seemed to accept his answer- his face did not show any signs of disappointment or annoyance at his indecisiveness. “Well, then!” He placed his hands on his hips. “If there’s something you see and it looks like you can do it, give it a try!”

Ciel’s singular blue eye stared up at him accusingly, silently ordering him to _find something and do it! Now!_

Sebastian stared back for several moments, before springing into action. He shot away from the two males, speeding through several circus acts with ease and grace. The tent became much quieter, now, as everyone watched him in awe.

Just as he was preparing his next act- sword swallowing- Dagger stopped him. “You’re amazing, Black!” His young eyes sparkled as he spoke.

Sebastian felt Ciel move closer to him, but before the child could utter a word, Dagger continued on. “You’re almost as good as the other newcomer!” He cried excitedly, causing both Sebastian and Ciel to stiffen. _Other newcomer?_

“Hm? Other..?” Ciel spoke up, staring up at the blonde curiously.

“Yeah!” Dagger responded. “There’s this amazing guy who just joined! Look,” He lifted a finger, pointing up above their heads, “up there!”

Sebastian, while generally uninterested in this circus disaster, found himself intrigued in this other person. He was a _demon_ , surely no mortal human could surpass his skill? His eyes followed Dagger’s finger, searching for the individual in question.

Craning his head upward, he felt his angular eyes widen as the tightrope lurched dramatically, under the weight of a particular _red head_ , twisting and prancing across it. A lump had formed in his throat.

“Hey, Red!” Dagger cupped his hands up near his mouth, calling up to them, much to Sebastian’s dismay. “Come down for a sec!”

Had he not been bound by the now boiling-with-rage thirteen year old at his side, Sebastian would have ran. He could practically _feel_ the change in the air as the redhead noticed him, rubies locking on emeralds. His ears rang, suddenly assaulted by a squeal of excitement, and his eyebrow twitched with annoyance. Not only was this person in question- Red- a _reaper,_ but it was _the_ reaper.

Grelle leapt down from the rope, ignoring the horrified gasps from the other circus members as she did so. Landing dramatically and without a scratch, she sauntered towards the butler, a hand on her hip. Ciel stiffened at Sebastian’s side, bristling at her careless display of immortal prowess in front of so many people.

“Ah, hello darling!” She exclaimed. “I didn’t expect to see you here!” She reached forward to caress his face, to which he leaned away from.  

“I didn’t expect to see you here, either…” He answered, trying to keep his voice steady. In any other instance, he would have dreaded her very presence. However, in this particular circumstance, he was almost glad to see her. He was incredibly curious as to why she was here- working undercover of all things. It was most unusual. Reapers never did sneaky work- they came, collected the souls of the deceased, then left. The situation was most curious, indeed. If she was here, that meant something _big_ was going on- probably having to do with the missing children Sebastian and his Lord had been sent to investigate.

Dagger either flat out ignored Grelle’s outward display of affection, or was too stupid to process it. “I’ll introduce you- these two joined just today! The small one is Smile, and the big one is Black!” He smiled, placing one hand on Sebastian’s shoulder and the other on Grelle’s. “The circus is all about teamwork, so make sure to get along well!” Sebastian rolled his eyes. Couldn’t the fool see that they were already (unfortunately) acquainted?

Grelle’s phosphorus eyes were bearing a hole into Sebastian’s skull, and he shifted his weight from foot to foot- hating the way it felt to be picked apart by her steady gaze. “Don’t worry.” She said, not breaking her stare away from the butler before her. “ _Black_ and I will be doing much more than getting along.”

-

Grelle’s wrist was cold as he hauled her outside the tent. Thankfully, she was coming along willingly enough and wasn’t causing too much of a scene. “Aah, I love it when you man-handle me, darling.” She sighed, allowing herself to be dragged along by the butler. The pair paused after he had lead her around the side of the tent, out of sight and out of earshot.

Releasing her wrist, Sebastian turned to face her. She visibly swooned under his gaze, much to his general annoyance. “I have a question for you, Grelle.” He moved closer to her, closing the space between himself and the wall of the practice tent, attempting to corner her. “Do be a _dear_ and tell me what you’re doing here, of all places, working undercover?” His voice was barely above a whisper, out of fear some eavesdropping circus member was around the corner, despite not being able to sense anyone.

“Management would have a cow if I released such important soul information to a demon, of all things!” Grelle sighed dramatically, her voice still as loud and boisterous as ever. “I’m sorry, love, I can’t tell you-“

Sebastian felt a low growl arise in his throat as he became more and more annoyed at this entire situation.  “I assure you, I don’t plan to do anything malicious with any souls. I have no interest in poor quality ones.” Sebastian stared down at her, not breaking eye contact. “Pray, do tell.”

Grelle was as stubborn as a mule- this, everyone knew- but whether or not it was due to her flamboyant arrogance or her overall manic personality was a mystery. Underneath Sebastian’s gaze, she did not squirm with discomfort. She smiled, instead. “I’m afraid I cannot, dearest.” Her voice dripped with false sympathy, her emerald eyes sharp and calculating. “I could, however…” her hands found their way to the front of his shirt, and she promptly yanked him forward with inhuman strength, prompting their noses to become only mere inches apart. “… be persuaded~”

His jaw tightened, and he felt his eyes begin to sting as his pupils turned to slits. _Why did these kinds of things only happen to him?_

He opened his mouth to speak once more, feeling his fangs brush the inside of his lips, when a certain presence- tiny, angry, and _annoying_ \- was rapidly approaching. Turning his head, he heard the individual in question call out his name.

“ _Sebastian!”_ Ciel sounded more bratty than usual, if that was even possible. “ _Sebastian!!”_

The butler shot away from the death god before him, his eyes returning to normal as the child rounded the corner of the tent and stomped towards him. Before he could aggravate his butler any further, Grelle spoke.

“ _Ugh,_ do you always have to pop up and interrupt something?” She hissed, her razor sharp teeth gleaming. “You’re insufferable-“

“ _Silence_!” Ciel barked, cutting Grelle off mid sentence. Whatever compelled her to listen to his command was a mystery.

Sebastian bowed in front of the child. “My apologies, my lord. Do you need something?”

“I do, indeed.” The child hissed, his attention still on the flaming redhead before him. It was almost comedic- the child clad in his silly circus getup, boiling with such anger that his little body trembled; now pointing a tiny, accusatory finger towards Grelle. “I need to know- what are _you_ doing here?”

Grelle looked as if she was ready to drop kick the boy into the next country, her eyes blazing with anger and her fangs gleaming as her lips were pulled back in a snarl. “I’m here on _duty_ , obviously.” She spat through gritted teeth. “Do you think I’d join a circus for the kicks? This place is disgusting, far too unfitting for a lady.” To further her point, Grelle flicked several specks of dirt from her coat sleeve, before tossing her hair over her shoulder dramatically.

Sebastian had to fight back a chuckle, while the young lord seemed to only bristle more at Grelle’s response, having zero patience for her whatsoever. Thankfully, though, Ciel seemed to possess enough intelligence to know that arguing with Grelle was as good as arguing with a brick wall, and he huffed with annoyance, not offering a retort. His single eye was blazing with anger, and Sebastian humored himself by thinking that he was probably hungry and tired, and could do with a nap.

“Whatever. I don’t care, as long as you stay out of my way.” Ciel spat. “My butler and I will do the same for you. It’s best if we don’t interfere with each other’s work, yes?”

Grelle groaned in response, waving her hand dismissively at the child. “Alright, Earl.”

Sebastian had forgotten how amusing it was- watching a fully grown (wo)man argue with a child.

Ciel turned his attention on his butler, beginning to walk away from the redhead. “Come, Sebastian.” Following closely behind him, Sebastian felt a smile work its way onto his lips as he heard Grelle's audible disdain at his departure.

-

Sebastian had already decided that majority of his circus investigation would be done at night. Everyone would be asleep (especially that insufferable child), and he would be able to come and go as he pleased. There were no ‘ _off limit areas’_ if there was no one there to prevent him from entering them, after all.

However, it was per protocol to be assigned a tent to sleep in, whether or not he planned to use it. It was a minor setback that he would have to share it with some other circus members, but it certainly wouldn’t be hard to sneak past their slumbering bodies. He halfway expected to be paired with Ciel, since it was known amongst the higher ranking members that he was his butler. It would have been much easier that way, after all.

That luxury was not bestowed upon him, however.

“Alright, everyone!” A crowd of circus members had gathered around Joker, who had a partially crumpled paper in his hands. “I’ve got the tent assignments, here. They’re the results of a lottery, for fairness.”

 “Smile… You’re in tent eight.” Joker announced. “Here’s your roommate!” He reached into the crowd and patted a young, freckled teenager on the shoulder.

“Black, you’re in tent nine.” Joker continued on down the list, ignorant to Ciel’s sudden disagreement with the rooming arrangement. He opened his mouth to object, but Joker continued on anyways. “Your roommate will be Red!”

Sebastian felt his entire body become tense. Beside him, it was Ciel’s turn to be humored, and he had to fight the impulse to break the child in half for finding this _unfortunate_ situation funny in the slightest. He barely had time to protest before a certain presence made itself known by latching onto his other side before assaulting his ears once more with an unnecessarily loud squeal of delight.

“Aahh! How wonderful!” Grelle was ecstatic, purely and whole heartedly, while Sebastian was thinking of all the awful implications of their arrangement. “You and I are intended to be, darling! This is proof- it’s our destiny!”

Destiny was nonexistent, and Sebastian was considering the consequences of killing his red companion with his bare hands here, now, in front of everyone. Sure, she was funny sometimes, and was halfway tolerable, but having to share a _room_ with her would be outright unbearable.

“Now then, be sure to make friends with your roommates! Everything will go along much smoother if you do!” Joker had finished reading off his list, and the assigned individuals had begun to group themselves. Some stood in pairs of two, while others were in groups of three and four.

 How unfortunate it was that Sebastian had been paired with Grelle Sutcliff, out of all the people before him.

The freckled teenager had made his way over to Ciel, and he seemed to be attempting to make friendly conversation with the socially inept Earl. Sebastian tried to shake Grelle from his shoulder, to no avail. It was going to be a long night.

-

Tent nine was small- furnished with a single chest for their belongings, a nightstand, and a pair of bunk beds.

Grelle was distraught at the tent, declaring that the living conditions were _too cramped and disgusting._ Sebastian was not exactly thrilled either, but he held his tongue. His complaints would fall on deaf ears, anyways.

“I want the top bunk.” He declared.

“That’s fine, darling!” Grelle had already taken a seat on the bottom bunk, her legs crossed at the ankle. “I prefer the bottom, anyways~” She winked at him, flashing her gleaming fangs at him in a half smile.

He did not comment, hoisting himself onto his bunk and settling into the old, dusty smelling mattress. At the other end, his feet dangled off awkwardly.

-

His tailcoat had been abandoned- now folded nicely and slung over the chest. Underneath his white button-up, he was beginning to sweat.

He was getting antsy.

He had been lying completely still for almost two and a half hours. Grelle (thankfully) had not said a word, and he assumed she had fallen asleep at one point or another.

Sitting up, Sebastian peered over the side of the bunk in the darkness. The air was so quiet and still, he briefly wondered if Grelle was even present at all.

He slung his legs over the side, and promptly yanked them right back up when a cold hand grabbed his ankle.

“Can’t sleep, dearest?” Grelle’s voice was uncharacteristically soft. “I can think of something to keep us busy.”

“So can I.” Sebastian hissed. “I’ve got to investigate this damned circus so my master and I can be done.”

Grelle flipped over in her bed, causing it to creak loudly. “You aren’t leaving this tent. I don’t want you snooping around and causing trouble- I don’t want to deal with the paperwork.” She groaned loudly. “I’m already on the shitlist at dispatch.”

 _That isn’t my problem_ , Sebastian silently shot back. “How do you expect to prevent me from doing so, hm?”

“Ill tie you up and leave you up there til morning.” She spat.

“Don’t test me, Grelle.” Rubbing his face, Sebastian groaned, suddenly exhausted from having to deal with so many _insufferable_ people. “I’ll choke you unconscious and leave _you_ down there and continue my investigation.” He smiled when he heard her writhe underneath.

“You have no idea how much I’d love that~”

Still smiling, he innocently offered a change in subject. “May I inquire what kind of issue would cause you to refrain me from going on a midnight stroll?”

“A soul related issue.”          

“What _kind_ of soul related issue?”

“A big one.”

The instinctive urge to kill Grelle in the most painful, inhumane way possible was growing by the second. Sebastian was clenching his jaw so tightly, he was surprised he hadn’t broken his teeth. She was only amusing when she was being a hard-ass to someone that _wasn’t_ him, and as of right now, she had teetered back over to the realm of being downright obnoxious just for the sake of being obnoxious. 

“You’ve had no problem with sharing important information with me before. Since when has your reaper dispatch prevented you from doing anything, ever?” He growled, fed up with her being so hell-bent on being uncooperative.

She didn’t reply, and he was getting impatient.

“ _Well?_ ”

Grelle groaned underneath, tossing and turning in her bed. “If I tell you, I expect compensation for doing so.”

“Your compensation is I won’t kill you in your sleep.” Sebastian was briefly considering doing such a thing anyways, regardless if she decided to tell him or not. “Now _spill.”_

“Fine!” Grelle hissed. “In a few days, there will be an inspection of a large quantity of souls. It’s a special case, which is why I’ve had to come out here.”

A large quantity of souls, then? Lots of people were going to die soon, for whatever reason. Blinking, Sebastian wondered whom they might belong to- the circus members, the crowd, the missing children? This was useful information, indeed.

“See? That wasn’t so hard, now was it?” Sebastian leaned over the side of his bed, staring at Grelle in the darkness. She was on her side, her long hair draping over her frame. Her phosphorus eyes reflected a nonexistent light. “Thank you, _darling.”_ He spoke in his signature low, sultry voice.

At his words, she sank deeper into her mattress, her legs drawing up underneath her quilt as she squealed with delight. “Aah, I love it when you tease me! Why don’t you come down here and we can-“

“I’ll pass.” Sebastian cut her off, not entirely fond of the idea of hearing about whatever sexual fantasy she had come up within the past three seconds. “Perhaps another night.” He offered her a wink before pulling his head back up to his own bunk and resting it on his pillow. It was in his nature to enjoy making her _squirm,_ after all.

-

Juggling butler duties and circus duties was dull work. Conservatively snooping around the circus grounds during the day was turning up with nothing, and Ciel was beginning to become increasingly cranky as the days passed. Between that, and having to deal with the circus fools, he was ready to _leave_.

Thankfully, though, he and Ciel had arranged a plan that would hopefully cause a progression in their investigation. They were going to look through the higher ranking members’ tents for any useful information while they were busy doing their performances. It was a fool proof plan- nothing could go wrong.

Except, something _did_ go wrong. Sebastian was about to leave to begin his search after consulting with his Lord, when an exasperated Joker appeared. On his back, was that young girl, the one that did the trapeze.

“Black!” Joker stopped in front of the butler. “Wendy twisted her ankle; she can’t appear in the performance anymore. Please, go in her place.”

Sebastian’s eyebrow twitched in annoyance. _Bugger._

-

The surprise performance was only a minor setback to Sebastian. He didn’t have a problem with having to do it- he have some time away from that child, and be able to display a feat of acrobatic prowess in front of hundreds of people. It was a win-win.

Except, it wasn’t a win-win. Not after he had appeared in the tent, coming face to face with his newly assigned trapeze partner _._ It was _her._ It was _Grelle._

How _delightful._

Later, on her platform, she was putting on a display of several different poses, obviously greatly enjoying being the center of attention.

Her hair was tied up by a red ribbon- her locks cascading down in a single ponytail behind her. She was certainly _dressed_ for the occasion as well- sporting crimson, tight fitting clothing that hugged her around the waist. The circus lights reflected off of her ivory skin, and gleamed on her wide, sharp-toothed smile.

Despite being a reaper, she was still an _exquisite_ thing to look at. Sometimes.

Grelle, after noticing Sebastian’s staring, offered him a wink after cocking her hip in his direction. A small smile formed on his lips.

He really didn’t _want_ to touch her- he didn’t _want_ to perform with her. He’d have to listen to her gush about it all night, and probably every other time they crossed paths for the rest of his life. He was perfectly content with watching her pose dramatically and act a fool on her platform- delaying the show, he might add- until he noticed a particularly unfortunate situation down below.

It was Beast- the woman with that lovely tiger. She had ripped the strings on the back of her blouse and was leaving- Sebastian assumed to return to her tent and fix her wardrobe malfunction.

How tragic. His young lord was snooping around their belongings at that exact moment, and she’d probably find him. Just another thing to go wrong, he supposed. After his act, he’d have to go snatch him out of there.

Sebastian looked over at Grelle with a sense of urgency now showing in his crimson gaze. She seemed to notice, and the act was on.

While it was unfortunate that Grelle was his partner, he couldn’t deny that he was excited for the act. Two supernatural beings, both of them loving to show off their prowess, could put on one _hell_ of a performance.

Considering they had no prior plan or coordination whatsoever, there were no mishaps. Sebastian allowed Grelle to go first, watching as she swung from her bar and twirled through the air with the serene grace of an experienced performer. His grip was strong as he caught her, and for a moment, he was not concerned with having to touch her vile skin. She flashed a toothy grin up at him, and he responded with a fanged smile of his own. Tossing her back to her bar, he made a mental note to out-do her when it was his turn to take to the air.

The crowd screamed with delight as the pair silently engaged in a challenge of who could do the most flips, the most elegant twirls, and put on the _best_ act.

He tried to pretend he wasn’t at least halfway enamored with the scarlet reaper’s ability to command the attention of an audience. She was a work of art- truly- the way she put on a show like she had been waiting to do so for her entire life. When she flipped through the air, her red ponytail moved along with her, like an elegant ribbon following a ribbon dancer. She was beautiful, in her own weird, off-putting way.

Sebastian was almost disappointed when it was over, despite the ever pressing sense of urgency to prevent Ciel from being caught red handed in someone’s tent.

Landing gracefully on his platform, he looked back at her. She was back at it- offering the crowd a dramatic display of poses- bowing extravagantly and such. He felt a small twinge of sentimentality in his chest, and he allowed a smile to creep onto his lips before making his way down to the circus floor and creeping out of the tent.

She was truly _something else_ when she wasn’t so painstakingly _annoying_.

What a lovely creature he had come into contact with. Too bad their circus business was almost over with- who knew how long it would be before he had the unfortunate joy of seeing his reaper again.

**Author's Note:**

> Abrupt endings are one of my specialties, lmao
> 
> Anyways, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed <3


End file.
